Distinguished Alumni videos: Awards night 2016

Watch the inspiring speeches and stories filmed at our Distinguished Alumni Awards ceremony in 2016.

Introduction

An introduction to the evening, with speakers Jenny Dixon and Professor Stuart McCutcheon, and a mihi from Dr Manuka Henare.

David Mitchell – BArch (1964)

Alumni Orator, Associate Professor Allan Badley, introduces David Mitchell.

David is one of New Zealand’s foremost architects. His influence has been as educator, author and commentator, as well as designer and practitioner. David has received many awards for his architecture, including the New Zealand Institute of Architects Gold Medal in 2005. In 2014 he was the Creative Director of New Zealand’s first-ever exhibition at the Venice Biennale of Architecture.

Graeme Wheeler – BCom Well (1972), MCom (1973)

Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Graeme Wheeler, with introduction from Allan Badley.

Graeme is Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, a position he has held since 2012. He was employed by the World Bank for 14 years including as Treasurer and later Managing Director, Operations, based in Washington DC. In this role he led the World Bank’s interactions with the International Monetary Fund on the Global Financial Crisis.

Professor Karen Willcox – BE (1994), SM MIT (1996), PhD MIT (2000)

Professor Karen Willcox accepts her Distinguished Alumni Award.

Karen is Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics and co-Director, Center for Computational Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is making a global impact through her research and teaching on the development of computational models for data to decisions in engineering systems, and through her passion for mentoring the next generation of engineering leaders.

David AR Williams QC – LLB (1965), LLM Harv. (1966)

David AR Williams QC at the 2016 Distinguished Alumni Awards Dinner.

David is New Zealand’s leading international arbitrator. He has served as a Justice of the NZ High Court and the Court of the Dubai International Financial Centre.  He is presently the President of the Cook Islands Court of Appeal.  He is the co-author with Professor Amokura Kawharu of New Zealand’s leading text book on Arbitration. He is an Honorary Professor of Law at the University of Auckland.

Dr Divya Dhar – MBChB (2010), MBA Penn. (2014), MPA Harv. (2014)

Young Alumna of the Year, Dr Divya Dhar, at the 2016 Distinguished Alumni Awards Dinner.

Divya is a doctor and social justice campaigner. She is CEO and co-founder of Seratis, a care coordination mobile application for patients and healthcare providers, and founder of the P3 Foundation, the largest youth-for-youth not-for-profit organisation engaged in international development in New Zealand. In 2010, she was named Young New Zealander of the Year.